Excitement is building....

After spending 4 hours in the car and a bunch of money in Harrisburg getting our documents appostilled, I was very excited to find out we are essentially number 2 in line for a boy!!! So keep those fingers crossed that we find out very soon who Alek's little brother will be!!!!

Change of plans....

You may have noticed the change of the title of our blog. After an update from our agency last week and realizing that so many people are waiting for girls, and they don't have a whole lot of families for boys, we decided to open up our request to either gender, which essentially means we will most likely have another son! The good news is that our agency said that once our dossier is with them a referral could come quickly!! The bad news is I am still waiting on this stupid I171 H to arrive to complete the dossier. So keep your fingers crossed that this all comes to together quickly and we will be off to Russia soon!!

Happy Mother's Day!

Before I was a Mom I made and ate hot meals.
I had unstained clothing. I had quiet conversations on the phone.Before I was a Mom I slept as late as I wanted
And never worried about how late I got into bed.
I brushed my hair and my teeth everyday.Before I was a Mom,I cleaned my house each day.
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to lullabies.Before I was a Mom, I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.Before I was a Mom, I had never been pooped on, Spit up on,
Chewed on, Peed on, Or pinched by tiny fingers.Before I was a Mom, I had complete control of myself;
My thoughts, My body, And my mind.
I slept all night.Before I was a Mom, I never held down a screaming child so that doctors could do tests or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.Before I was a Mom,I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put it down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.Before I was a Mom, I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a Mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important.Before I was a Mom, I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every ten minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth, The joy, The love, The heartache,
The wonderfulment, Or the satisfaction of being a Mom.I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much
before I was a Mom. Happy Mother's Day to all the special women in our lives!!

Stalking the Mailman!

Yes, I have resorted to stalking our mailman while waiting for this I171H to arrive. If I beat him home, I have my perch up in my window, anxiously awaiting his arrival and hoping he is delivering this one special piece of paper. All I want for Mother's Day is this (well don't tell Kevin that, some jewelry would be nice too!)

Happy Cinco de Mayo!!

It's Margarita Time, salt, no salt, take your pick! I would be in even more of a celebratory mood if I get home to find our I171H!!!
In the mean time, I will look forward to quitting time and enjoying a nice refreshing beverage and dreaming of warm summer days to come....
Here is our little Parrothead hanging at the beach.

Tubes...The Sequel

Alek had his second set of ear tubes placed yesterday. He did great, he was our brave little trooper. He got to bring Woody and Buzzy back with him to the OR and they both got ID bracelets too. He woke up well from anesthesia which was great. It was nice having him snuggle up for awhile yesterday, but by dinnertime he was back to his usual active self!
So hopefully this will be it for us and the tubes!!

Still waiting on the I171H to arrive.....our dossier will be done once this is here, so hurry up already! In the mean time here are some pics:

Come on USCIS approval!!!

We know our homestudy is with Philly USCIS, so we are just waiting on the approval form to come and that is the last piece of my dossier needed to take to Harrisburg for appostilling!! Philly generally is quick, so we hope to have it in our hands soon. I may be a little off on being done by the end of the month, since that is Sunday, so new goal will be first week in May.

On another note: LETS GO FLYERS!! Hopefully they can redeem themselves tonight after the embarassing beating they sustained Monday.
Of course as always, Kevin is lucky enough to go to the game, but Alek and I will be cheering at home. He can yell Lets go flyers! We were trying to teach him to say, "Up on your skates boys", but that was a little much for him!

Well keep your fingers crossed that our approval comes this week!

Here are some pics of Alek hiking with us, he loves to sit on daddy's shoulders and steer his head (daddy's poor ears!)

Happy Easter

Can't believe it is Easter already!! We are cruising along on the paperwork front, homestudy is done, corrections will be made this week and we should have it by the end of the week, our medicals are done as well, so I am still on target for having our dossier complete and on its way by the end of the month! Alek had a blast at Easter with lots of treats from several Easter Bunnies! He was definitely pooped by the end of the day!

Alek has a new cousin!

Welcome to the world Reilly Elizabeth!! Congrats Joe, Niki, and big brother Joe!!!
She is absolutely gorgeous and we are so happy for you all!

A glimpse into

the paperchase... Yes, this is what my dining room table looks like most nights as I try to stay organized!! You can see where all the papercuts come from!

Home Visit and spring fun

Today was our HomeStudy home visit, it went very well! The social worker was great, so sweet, she has two kiddos from Russia as well. So we should have our report in two weeks! It was definitely a lot easier and alot less nerve wracking this time around. Alek of course provided the entertainment, he sure knows when he has an audience! We have also had a couple nice spring days, so we went to the park yesterday, Alek had a blast and so did mom in the warm weather! Thought I add of pic of Alek's silly new face--this is what he does when he says "Cheese!"

Was I just in a government office?

No, couldnt be--it went too easy!!
I had to go to Montgomery County Recorder of Deeds to obtain a property ownership verification letter (one of several new additions to the dossier paperwork). I went at lunch, expecting a hassle (am I jaded or what?) and instead found two extremely pleasant women who were more than happy to help me. The letters were done as I waited, there was no charge (what?!?!? something in the process is free?) and they sent me on my way with lots of best wishes and congratulations!!
I still can't believe how easy that was!!

The Hazard of the Paperchase...

Paper cuts and lots of them--I am up to 4 already!! I am working hard on the dossier documents, although I have to stay my motivation was not like it was the first time around (when I completed all the forms in one evening!) I guess knowing we have a 4-6 month wait, doesn't help, we knew we were under the gun with Alek, so I was a maniac getting the forms done.
I have completed all the forms that we had to fill out (took me 4 days), so today I have already been on the phone making calls for things like Property Ownership Verification (thankfully the office I need to go to is 5 minutes from work!), Certificate of Assets (looking for a CPA or tax preparer--this one is annoying me!) and the Medical Certificates (hopefully this will be very easy). So that is my to-do list for today.
Thursday is our home visit which I am sure will go smooth.
Well, better go find some more band-aids!

Welcome to the terrible twos!!!

We are definitely knee deep in two year old drama--it is amazing how one little person can make you laugh hysterically and in the next breath you want to pull out your hair!! It is also amazing how quickly their moods can change, happy and laughing in one moment, horribly crying the next. Alek has got the pout face down to a science, it is hard not to laugh when he pulls it on you. He is truly a character--lets hope this phase is over before his little sister gets here!!!

Fingerprinting done

Well, that was alot easier than anticipated--we got down to Philly around 8:30 and were out of there by 9:30, so we did a little shopping and just enjoyed the morning. So we have just a few pieces of paperwork left for the homestudy and then our home visit is on the 30th. Do I dare say things are moving smoothly????

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Always remember to forget
The things that made you sad.
But never forget to remember
The things that made you glad.

Always remember to forget
The friends that proved untrue.
But never forget to remember
Those that have stuck by you.

Always remember to forget
The troubles that passed away.
But never forget to remember
The blessings that come each day.

Sláinte!
May the luck of the Irish be with you today!!

We are officially...

on the wait list!!! Got an email today letting us know--so hopefully within 4-6 months from now, we will have a referral!!!
It is exciting to think that this Christmas we could have two little ones anxiously awaiting Santa's arrival!!

Alek and his tractor!!!

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Just took a quick movie of Alek on his tractor--he is so funny!!

Alek has another new girlfriend!

Welcome to the world Ryan Helene!!! Congrats Mike, Cynthia, and big sister Keeley--we are so happy for you guys! Alek will now think he is so cool hanging out with two beautiful girls!! Alek and I went to Sesame Street Live on Saturday, he had a blast, he stared in amazement the first 15 minutes and then got into it, singing, clapping, and dancing, it was really cute, although he was not happy at all when it was time to leave.

Making progress

Well, our fingerprinting invitation came in, so we need to figure out a time to head downtown to get those done. Our homestudy is also set up for March 30th and we should have it in our hands a week after that, as long as all our documents are in order, which I am sure they will be. I also mailed off the first agency fee today and hopefully we will be officially in the waiting game soon!! Tomorrow we are off for a family fun day at Sesame Street Live--yes Kevin has a date with Big Bird at the same time the Flyers are playing--he is being a good sport about it! Can't wait to see Alek's reaction to the show.